Ruth B. Weg was a professor at the Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. She had a particular interest in sexuality and aging, but did not like being called "the other Dr. Ruth'".
Life
A child of European immigrants, Weg grew up in the Manhattan borough of New York City. By the age of eight, she had decided to go into medicine. She graduated from Hunter College with a degree in Biology, she had planned to continue onto medical school, but in the 1940s women were highly discriminated against; discouraged, she married her high school sweetheart and had two children, Robert and Andrea Bass. With her youngest still in diapers she decided to try for an advanced degree in Biology/Physiology and enrolled at New York University. Weg’s husband accepted a job in Los Angeles, where she then enrolled in the University of Southern California and earned a secondary Teaching Credential. She then taught for two years but returned USC for a Master's degree in biological sciences. Weg in 1958 received a Ph.D in Biochemistry/Biology from USC. Upon her graduation from the Biology department, USC appointed her head of environmental research and she taught several classes. In 1965, Weg married her second husband, Martin S. Weg, and gave birth to a daughter, Hanna Weg, at the age of 44. In 1970, she became an Associate Professor of gerontology, attaining a full professorship in 1984. She was one of several professors who did the initial planning for the Leonard Davis School of Gerontology at the University of Southern California. Weg helped develop the curriculum and was Dean of students for two years. Weg specialties included sexuality in the later years, appropriate nutrition, and promoting positive images of aging. Weg was forced retire at the age of 70.
She was also key organizer and designer of the Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, the first Gerontology school in the United States.
She also helped organize and teach the center’s Summer Institute for Advanced Study in Gerontology from 1969 to 1974.
Awards
Ruth B. Weg, Professor Emeritus of gerontology at the Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, was the first recipient of the USC Emeriti College Award for Distinguished Scholarly Service.
Selected publications
Weg, Ruth B.. Sexuality in the later years : roles and behavior. New York, New York: Academic Press.
Weg, R. B., & Loucks, W.. The aged: Who, where, how well. Mankato, Minn.: Mankato State University Gerontological Studies Program.
Weg, R. B., Markson, E. W., & Association for Gerontology in Higher Education.. The older woman. Washington, DC. Nutrition in the later years: A major player in health promotion and disease prevention. Palm Desert, CA: Convention Cassettes Unlimited.
Weg, R. B. University of Southern California. . Progress report: Multidisciplinary training program in gerontology. Los Angeles: The Center.
Weg, R. B., & Markson, E.. Older woman. Association for Gerontology in Higher Education, Washington, DC.
Weg, R. B.. Aged: who, where, how well. Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, Ethel Percy Andrus Gerontology Center, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA.
Weg, R. B.. Biology and physiology of development of aging. Gerontology And Geriatrics Education, 9, 9-16.
Weg, R. B.. Prolonged mild nutritional deficiencies: significance for health maintenance. Journal of Nutrition for the Elderly, 1, 3-22.
